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Upanishads : " The Cream of Vedas"
Vedanta ( Veda +anta i.e; the end of Vedas ) as the literal meaning connotes comprises the philosophical portion of Vedas, called the Upanishads.
Of about 280 Upanishads unearthed so far, 108 have been accepted as authorised texts , and out of them have been commented upon by great Acharyas lika Sri Sankaracharya , Sri Ramanjacharya, Sri Madhavacharya and thus are classified as major.

Discussion-2. "a matter of experience ( nishta ) is needed to complete the study of the Upanishads....."

Hence, a personal study of the scripture may not be alwayssufficient to help the Sadhaka
to go beyond the literary meaning of the language used, and reach the realms of Truth indicated by the language texts.

To a large extent, a matter of experience ( nishta ) is needed to complete the study of the Upanishad-s.

Hence it is that the mantram here qualifies a greater seeker as one who has well-ascertained, beyond all traces of doubt, the true import of the sacred mantram.

"Misunderstandings, half-understandings and non-understandings, can blockade the real fulfilment of a sincere study of the scriptures."
Next : Discussion-3. "By the Yoga …

Though many of the mantra-s are obviously clear, the exact meaning is very deep and naturally, very difficult to grasp.

This should be so, because the Upanishad-s are the best literature in the world that have successfully explained or defined, the inexplicable or the indefinable Infinite, it could not have been because of the words own meaning-contents; if at all words could express that which is beyond speech, they can only do so by means of their "suggestiveness."

In fact, the Upanishadic mantra-s have their achievements only in their play of suggestiveness.

In the world of pots the spittoon-pot-space covets the luck and glory of the sugar-pot-space!

On realizing, "I am Pure Space" even the very stuff of the spittoon-pot and sugar-pot are realized to exist but "In Me, the Eternal Space."

Even the wretched spittoon-pot-space can come to experience the contact its immediate oneness with the Space everywhere!

Similarly, when the seeker by rejecting his identifications with his mind, intellect and body, rediscover himself to be nothing but Pure Awareness, he becomes one with the all-pervading Self, and thus, finds himself the entire world of names and forms ---- he becomes the inner ruler in every name and form existing in the time-space-world!!

Krt-akrtyata, meaning "Their purpose is fulfilled": ( second line first term of this mantram ) -

Life is a struggle and an agitation, because, each one of us haas at every moment an honest regret at not having fulfilled ourselves in one or the other of our endless desires and plans.

A complete sense of fulfilment would be reached when all our desires dry up and all our plans end.

This state of "Krt-akrtyaya" --- yielding for us a steady satisfaction of having gained all that is to be gained, known all that is to be known, seen all that is to be seen etc., --- is gained immediately at the ending of our ignorance about our own Divine Nature.

With the discovery of our true identity as the Self, the accomplished…

Discussion-1. "Last two mantra-s explained that realisation of Self is very difficult- if so why go for that .... this is answered in this mantram"

If, as we have been told in the last two mantra-s, the realisation of the Self is so very difficult and the technique of accomplishing it is so delicate and exacting, a doubt may arise in the minds of the uninitiated as to why they should, after all, launch themselves into such a danger-ridden pilgrimage.

This is answered here.

Next : Discussion-2. "Herein the beggar is satisfied in the very knowledge of his new identity and its corresponding status in life."

Just as in the previous mantram, the scripture here not only denies and refutes any succee to foolish and stupid methods but also at the same time in all kindness points out the right path and the correct methods of Self-Perfection.

Here Mother Sruti promises sure success to all those who are healthy in body, intellect and spirit, and who have the necessary amount of discriminative understanding to differentiate the true from the false, and thus live in self-denial .....

Every intelligent young man today, who has a wide-awakened discriminative intellect, and who lives the world of his circumstances and imotions intelligently, has all the equipments necessary for being taught the ideal way of living in self-control and healthy self-denial.

When such awakened intellects pursue a life of renunciation and self-sacrifice, with a view to gaining a greater amount of self-mastery, their 'tapas' becomes certainly fruitful and immensely profitable to them.

Therefore to insist that the term 'linga' here means the external symbols of renunciation will not help us in these days, when majority of even the so-called 'sannyasins' have become animals in disguise!

The linga here does not, therefore, mean the colour of the robes or the condition of hair on the head or the kind of utensils or the mattress used.

In short, it is not the external symbols of 'Sanyasin' , as some would have it.

In the days of the scriptures, the Rishi-s placed a greater emphasis upon the mental and intellectual conditions and qualities in a seeker than upon the mere external marks / symbols
of spirituality which the disciple may with convenience carry about him.

'Sruti' here is thus using the term 'linga' in its largest scope of its implication.

Or else, we will have to accept the modern brahmanik interpretation and understand the mantram to mean that even intelligent tapascharya has no spiritualizing force unless the one performing the austerities is clothed in the ochre robes or has a shaven head or carries a kamandalu or conversely, it would mean that if one wears this special dress and has gone through "the barber's treatment" he can come to claim all the best results even his most unintelligent and excessive tapas!
A text - book of wisdom cannot thus be made a "BIBLE OF STUPIDITY" if there is yet any sense of reverence for great Up…

"without proper 'linga' -" a massive structure of ugliness has come to be built upon in our culture by 'unintelligent pandita-s' who has come to prepare in it the very 'tomb' of true Hinduism!!Recently I had received a mail from a pandita some where in UP, who, of course, had not the guts to give his true profile himself, but raised an owl - cry from this sorrowful tower of misconceived notions! Next : Discussion - 7. "linga .... to be continued "
To be continued ...

"Neither by mere excitement nor by tapas without *linga* can one hope to climb the ladder of Spirituality." : -After meeting a great Master or soon after listening to great discourse, one may get his enthusiasm fired up to take certain hasty decisions on renunciation and sacrifice.

But this temporary warmth of Spirituality cannot sustain itself, but will soon cool itself down to an ineffectual luke-warm idle-hope!!

Next : Discussion-5. "Excessive austerity ...."

To be continued ...

* linga = Proper, Intelligent * { Second line last term of the Mantram }

He who is still in delusions and yet seeking spiritual progress only to serve as a handle to life, certainly would be weak in intellect, mind and body judged from the spiritual standards of perfection.

Again in a blind over-enthusiasm, if any fool hopes to scramble up the alters of Spiritual perfection through self-persecution and severe tapascarya, he again is condemned here by the Rishi-s.

Discussion-2." Some more misconceptions ...""READ CAREFULLY AND ASSIMILATE CLEARLY VERY IMPORTANT MESSAGE!

"The majority of seekers have a great belief that a seeker should be an almost useless individual in society, an utter failure in life, and a cursed desperado, who had more disappointments in life than successes!"Again, they have an idea that any amount of spasmodic, irregular, unintelligent and excessive austerities are good for spiritual progress.3. "There is yet another very dangerous and tragic misconception especially in Humanity, that a God-seeking God-fearing life is the special vocation of a certain class of men who move about in special garments and special outfits!"**** "As we see in ISLAM AND CHRISTIANITY THE PRIEST CLASS ( MOULVI…

"To Swami Adi Sri Sankaracharya, Godhood is an ascent of human to the highest pinnacle of his revolutionizing possibility!"

2.

"To Sri Ramanujacharya and Sri Madhvacharya, God descends into the human and by His Divine Touch of Grace divinizes the individual devotee!"

In fact, whether the river "reaches"the ocean or the ocean " receives" the river, the effect is the same.

Truth remains uncontradicted.

{In both the cases, of the river reaching the ocean or the ocean receiving the river, the river in its final stage loses its separate quality and merges to become "one with the ocean." }
I am here only anticipating a metaphor which Sruti Herself makes use of in the sam…

If none of these accredited methods of knowledge -- such as extensive reading, intense study, and perfect tution --- can make us realise this Supreme Knowledge and take us to the spiritual perfection, does it amount to saying that Sruti - declarations are but beautiful paintings of an unrealisable, though perfect utopia?

**"In the second part of the mantram this doubt completely cleared" : -**"Yame - vaisa vrnute tena labhyahtasyaisa atma vivrnute tanum svam." **"It is gained only by him who wishes to attain it with his whole heart. To such one, the Self reveals its true nature."